The most recent issue of the Diseases of the Colon & Rectum examines whether traveling long distances to high-volume centers would compensate for travel burden among patients undergoing rectal cancer resection.

It is unclear whether traveling long distances to high-volume centers would compensate for travel burden among patients undergoing rectal cancer resection.

The short-distance/low-volume group had a 34% high risk of overall mortality at 5 years

Diseases of the Colon & Rectum

The researchers reported that a total of 18,605 patients met inclusion criteria, of which 2067 patients were in the long-distance/high-volume group, and 1362 in the short-distance/low-volume group.

The median travel distance was 62.6 miles for the long-distance/high-volume group and 2.3 miles for the short-distance/low-volume group.

Patients who were younger, white, privately insured, and stage III were more likely to have traveled to a high-volume center.

When controlled for patient factors, stage, and hospital factors, the team noted that patients in the short-distance/low-volume group had lower odds of a lymph node yield ≥12, and neoadjuvant chemoradiation, and higher 30-day and 90-day mortality compared with those in the long-distance/high-volume group.

The short-distance/low-volume group had a 34% high risk of overall mortality at 5 years compared with the long-distance/high-volume group.

Dr Fleming's team concludes, "Our results indicate that when controlled for patient, tumor, and hospital factors, patients who traveled a long distance to a high-volume center had improved lymph node yield, neoadjuvant chemoradiation receipt, and 30- and 90-day mortality compared with those who traveled a short distance to a low-volume center."